The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1887-12-10

] tlbO III consequence VI DuSliCSS unBA-
pectedly OBTAINING him in town, he had not
reached home until close upon seven O'Clock.
| He then found no trace of his father or of
| his brother and, after waiting for the return
of the servant and making inquiries about
| the neghborhood, he had come to the con-
clusion that on being left alone his father
had for the first time on record, taken it
into his head to go out by himself, and had
either lost himself or met with some worse
| mischance.
Subsequent events confirmed the latter
| theory. Rev. Alfred Stuckey, on being
| communicated with by telegram next day,
| replied that he had left his father aG home
| in his chair at 5:l5 on the previous evening.
On the same day Mr.. Stuckey's hat was
| found in the osier beds at Chiswck. A
day or two later walking stick, which
had certainly belonged to him, was picked
up in the river at Chelsea. The police con-
tinued the hue-and-cry with unabated
vigor, but after these discoveries only one
theory of the old gentlemans disappear
ance seemed tenable. There was no motive
| TO suggest his having met foul play. He
had, neither the means nor the strength to
have travelled to any distance. The con-
clusion seemed inevitable that he had
strayed out for some purpose-perhaps for
no other reason than that his days outing
had unduly excited him-and had somehow
| fallen into the river. 1t was considerable
time, however, before the discovery of the
body put the old mans fate beyond ques-
ton. During the interval Ephraim Stuckey
was more than once summoned to different
points between Kew Bridge and Gravesend
for the purpose of inspecting the CHASTITY
human floatsam and jetsam of the river,
httf bO,,
elapsed when he received information that
the body of an elderly man had been found
at Deplford the linen of which appeared
to have been marked with an IS" The
features were all but undergraduate, but
after such inspection as was possible,
Ephraim without hesitation pronounced the
remains to be those of his father.
The inquest which followed and which
was, of course, held at Deptford, added only
one additional fact to those above stated.
The medical evidence showed that there
was severe confusion ON the head, which
had probably been caused before death,
and the doctor was strongly of the opinion
that the deceased had been stunned by this
blow and then thrown into the river. There
was nothing, however, to point to a definite
conclusion, and after hearing the evidence
of Rev. Alfred Stuckey and his brother as
to the mental condition of the deceased,
the jury returned verdict of Found
Drowned" A certificate of this verdict,
together with other documents relating to
the death, was subsequently lodged by the
Rev. Alfred Stuckey, as administrator of
the deceased, with the Monument Assur-
ance Company, in whose office the insur-
ance on Martin Stuckey's life had been
effected.
About week after this was done Mr..
Capper, the manager of the Monument AS
surauce Company, was shown into the office
of Mr.. George George, the company's So
licitor.
Well" he said, 'any result from the
inquiries in Stuckeys caseP'
YES, little" replied Mr.. George, ''but
am afraid nothing that is much use to as
at present"
sit is not a case of suicidc?"
"Judge for yourself. You remember
that at the inquest the Rev. Alfred Stuclkey
stated that he returned with his father
from Richmond about five,' and left
quarter Of an hour later in order to cat Oh
the 5:35 Metropolitan train to Kings
cross"
Il do"
VERY well. Now have ascertaiued that
Mr.. Alfred and the deceased TOOK a car
riage at Richmond not long before four p
m, but were only driven as far as Barnes
where, at their own request, they were put
down on the tow-path. | have found the
fyman, who says that he set them down on
the towpath nearly opposite Chiswick
about 4:3J, and saw them walk away east
ward. We have also got hold of an old
woman who saw them on the tow-path near
Hammersmith bridge; but whether below
or above she can not state, walking in the
direction of Putney. She says it was within
a few minutes of five o'clock, and just get
ing dusk. On that day, Oct ober IS, the sun,
you will find, set at 4:57. Now, it is not i'm
possible, of course, that Alfred Stuckey
may have been on the tow-p path walking
toward Putney about five o'clock, and yet
have afterward caught the 5 :35 train; but
to my mind this evidence throws grave
doubt on his story. Remember, we have
only Alfred Stuckey's word for it that the
deceased ever went home at ALL On the
other hand, there is strong presumption
that some time after five o'clock that night
he found his way into the river, having
been, according to the medical testimony
knocked on the head first, presumably by
some one who had a motive for doing so,
which stranger to him would not have"
"You think he was murderedP
81 form no theory at present; but think
that Messrs. Alfred and Ephraim Stuckey
between them, know more about their
fathers disappearance than they have yet
disclosed, and that the evidence we now
have offers a very convenient means OF
squeezing the truth out of them"
Then what do you advised"
Put all our information in the hands OF
the police. We shall never prove suicide,
and If il be case of murder that does not
help the Office. 1t is, therefore, not worth
the company's while TO spend money on
further inquiries. On the other hand if
there be any fraud in the case, the truth
will very soon come out when one or other
Of these gentlemen are arrested on charge
of murder, which i expect we shall see be-
fore another week is over"
In this last conjec ure Mr.. George George
was not mistaken--he very seldom was
about such matters. Within four or five
days from the time he forwarded his in
formation to Scotland Yard, the Rev. Alfred
Stuckey was IN custody, charged with mur-
dering his father.
When he appeared before tho magistrate
the facts detailed by Mr.. George was sup
| plemented by piece OF evidence of the
most damuing character. A tramp, named
Higgs, was called, and he deposcd to hav-
ing seen the deceased, whom he knew well